KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysian government is on alert for attempts of “commercial piracy” by the self-proclaimed heirs of the Sulu sultanate as they attempt to obtain Malaysian assets through legal means, said law minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.
FMT reported Azalina as saying that the claimants’ strategy now is to target commercial assets belonging to Malaysia as they have “they have tried everything” following the US$14.92 billion (RM62.56 billion) award meted out by Spanish arbitrator Gonzalo Stampa last year.
“We need to be very, very alert about this,” she said following a briefing on the matter in Parliament earlier today.
She described the supposed seizure of assets as the claimants’ attempt to “commit piracy against Malaysia”.
This comes after Luxembourg court bailiffs issued fresh seizure orders for two units of Malaysian state oil firm Petronas last week.
Malaysia did not participate in the purported arbitration proceedings and has never recognised the claim.
While Malaysia has also obtained a stay on the award in France, the ruling remains enforceable overseas under a United Nations treaty on arbitration.
Previously, the Spanish Constitutional Court rejected the extraordinary constitutional appeal filed by the claimants.
The appeal was to challenge the annulment concerning the appointment of Stampa as arbitrator in the dispute and their failure in the appeal process would mean that the Spanish Constitutional Court reaffirms Malaysia’s position.
The High Court of Justice of Madrid initially appointed Stampa as an arbitrator for the dispute in 2019, but two years later the same court annulled the appointment which also retroactively invalidated his actions as arbitrator including the preliminary award rendered.
The claimants had then complied with the annulment and took steps to appoint another arbitrator and at the same time filed a constitutional appeal to overturn the annulment.
In a statement following the briefing, Azalina said that the award given out by Stampa had gone against international public policy as it touches on Malaysia’s diplomatic immunity, jurisdictional immunity and sovereignty.
Azalina also maintained that the government would use all its resources and rights to stop the claims put forward by the so-called heirs of the now-defunct Sulu Sultanate. – The Vibes, February 28, 2023
